Mercury in Amsterdam

The Roman deity Mercury, or Mercurius, or Hermes (to use his ancient Greek
name) was the protector of anyone on the road. That means in the first
place that he was the god of the heralds and the merchants, who had to
travel wide and
far. However, in the age before capitalism, making profit was
considered to be something close to stealing, so Mercury was also
believed to be the protector of the thieves.

Among the greatest risks facing any Greek or Roman traveller was the
meeting with a dog. They were not the nice animals of today: shepherds
used them to keep wolves and bears away, so the shepherd's dogs were
not
afraid of human beings, and might attack them. The ancient Greeks
therefore
venerated their Hermes also as the killer of Argos (a
mythological watchdog with a hundred eyes).

A third task of Mercury was the protection of the souls of the departed
who
had to descend into the Netherworld (the house of Hades). One of his
titles was ψυχοπομπός (psychopompos, "guide of the
souls"). Among his
other responsibilities were the protection of messengers and people who
had to speak in public, and from this, he became the protector of sophists.

You will not
see Mercury performing those tasks in Amsterdam, but there are many
statues, busts, and
other representations, including houses and offices, all dating back to
the seventeenth to twentieth
centuries, which show the ancient god as the protector of trade.
Occasionally, you
will find a Mercury killing a monster, and of course you're always
allowed
to think about the protector of thieves after your encounter with an
Amsterdam pickpocket.

Among Mercury's
attributes are a winged hat or helmet, winged
sandals, and especially his herald's staff or caduceus: a winged
scepter
surrounded by snakes. Sometimes, you will see only Mercury's hat or
staff, but they will still remind you that Amsterdam owes its
prosperity
to international trade.